Politics is about persuading voters about priorities.
To do so, facts are important, but they can also be misused in an attempt to win the debate.
Here the facts fight back. This site presents the facts to help keep the debate clean and to persuade politicians and others to stick to the facts.

6 Responses

Only thing more ridiculous than his comment is the fact that he is suppose to be the treasurer maybe going back to primary school to learn his maths would be less ridiculous

Jodie RyeOctober 15, 2014 at 7:20 am ·

I wonder if Joe has planted a tree to carbon offset his cigar emissions.

Geoff DonnellanOctober 15, 2014 at 5:27 pm ·

It makes you wonder where these idiots live. They cannot possibly believe what they say in the media. They lied in their 2011 per election budget and the three independents (all conservative) saw the $7 billion hole and knew that an Abbott Government could not be trusted. How right they were.

peterOctober 21, 2014 at 11:20 pm ·

You know a graph with no explanation of how the measurement was made is totally meaningless. What we really need to do is build lots of nuclear and hydro-electric like everyone else in the OECD. Although we do lack decent rivers so just heaps of nuclear then.

Why

Between elections governments are held to account through debate. This debate takes place in the parliament, media, in workplaces, at BBQs and parties, around the kitchen table and online.Politicians, pundits and interest groups attempt to influence the debate and persuade us which side of the debate to take.

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Should the Australian government encourage renewable forms of energy or do we need to support fossil fuels? Is returning the budget back to surplus the number one priority and if so should be decrease spending or increase revenue? Should we focus on industrial relations or indigenous recognition?

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There are, of course, no right answers to such questions. But to use the complexity of a policy issue to cloud debate with half-truths and misrepresentation of the facts to win the debate undermines the democratic accountability of government.

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The media plays an important role in presenting an even handed account of the debate and ensuring a range of voices are heard. In turn politicians are keen to influence the debate through the media's reporting. Undue influence risks silencing some voices from the debate.
As the political debates continue Facts Fight Back will provide a timely and accessible source of information to help keep the debate clean and and ensure the public, journalists and the politicians themselves keep track of who is sticking to the facts.